


Beating Around The Bush

by Parker_Haven_Wuornos



Category: Haven (TV)
Genre: Bad Puns, Case Fic, Homoerotic Arm Wrestling, M/M, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Prompt Fic, References to Audrey/Nathan, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:27:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23421682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Parker_Haven_Wuornos/pseuds/Parker_Haven_Wuornos
Summary: Duke was good at reading people. He was good at the subtle push-pull of flirting, the art of knowing when to make the first move and when to hang back and let the first move come to you. Dwight not only hadn’t made any moves, he seemed utterly indifferent to the whole dance, and Duke only had so much dignity; he couldn’t throw it away on someone so oblivious.
Relationships: Duke Crocker/Dwight Hendrickson
Comments: 6
Kudos: 33





	Beating Around The Bush

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gendernoncompliant](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gendernoncompliant/gifts).



> Prompt fic for the wonderful Ashe Gendernoncompliant. I wrote seven thousand words for your rarepair, and I think that speaks for itself. To everyone else reading this, thank you and please leave a comment if you like it :)

“I’ll follow up on that and check in later,” Dwight said, turning and leaving while Duke raised one hand in a half-hearted wave that Dwight didn’t even see. 

He turned around just in time to see Nathan and Audrey exchanging a look.

Duke knew Nathan’s looks, possibly even better than Audrey did, and he damn well knew that was not a look he liked. 

“Stop.” 

Nathan’s eyebrows went up, his eyes widened and the corners of his mouth turned down ever so slightly. His innocent expression; the one that seemed so transparent Duke couldn’t believe everyone had always bought it when they were kids. “What?” 

Audrey had gone back to paperwork. Her tells weren’t quite as familiar to him, but working instead of acknowledging something obvious going on around her was definitely one of them. 

“Nathan. Audrey.” 

“Duke,” Nathan said, his expression unchanged. 

“What?” 

“What what?” Audrey asked. “We didn’t say anything.” 

“You didn’t have to _say_ anything. You’re thinking something. Spit it out.”

They exchanged another glance. Nathan flicked his head towards Duke. Audrey shook her head and then mirrored the gesture. Duke could roughly translate it out of non-communicative-asshole into “You tell him!” “No, you tell him!” 

Finally, Audrey sighed. “Dwight.” 

Duke tensed. “What about him?” 

Audrey looked at Nathan for help but he just shrugged and jerked his head in Duke’s direction again. She rolled her eyes at him before turning back to Duke. “We were just wondering if something was maybe going on with him. And you.”

“With me and Dwight?” Duke asked, instinctively looking at the door to make sure the man in question wasn’t lurking just outside, listening. “No. Why would you—where is this coming from?” 

Audrey opened her mouth, closed it again, took a deep breath, almost spoke, and then stopped again. “Duke… your eyes become literal hearts when you look at him. It’s… it’s very obvious.” 

Duke spluttered. “What? No! It’s—” 

Apparently Nathan was done being silent. “Oh come on, Duke, you haven’t looked at anyone like that since high school.” 

Audrey was easily distracted. “Aww, who did he look at like that in high school?” 

“Me,” Nathan said with no small amount of pride, which only made the humiliating farce of a conversation even worse. 

“Both of you, stop.” Duke shifted, twitching like he could shake this conversation off and forget it happened. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“I’m just seeing what’s in front of me,” Nathan said. 

“Well… stop,” Duke said. “Obviously it’s not going anywhere.” 

“What’s obvious?” Audrey asked. “I’m pretty sure I overheard him say ‘I need you’ the other day.” 

Duke rolled his eyes. “That was taken way out of— you know what, whatever.” 

“Duke,” Audrey said, standing up to stop him from leaving. “Come on, we’re just teasing.” 

“Yeah, well, stop.” He glanced out the door that Dwight had long since abandoned. “It’s not going to happen.” 

Audrey’s phone rang. She answered, nodding a few times, and then hung up. “Something weird out on Garden. This conversation isn’t over, Duke.” 

“Actually, yes it is.” He left without even offering to join them on the trouble hunt. Suddenly, he wasn’t feeling up to adventures. He just wanted to go home, pour himself a drink, and have a nice quiet pity party at home. 

Duke figured he was halfway to being canonized as the patron saint of hopeless crushes. An hour later, He was sitting with his drink on the deck, staring out at sea and thinking about all the people he’d fallen for without any chance of reciprocation. 

Nathan was the first, and for a while it hadn’t been hopeless. Not when they were kids anyway. It had been easier as teenagers, when that kind of exploration was par for the course and they’d been chasing each other. 

It had been different when he’d come back as an adult. Nathan was older, and so was he, and the space between them was just too big. 

After Nathan it was Audrey. That wasn’t hopeless so much as high effort, and there was a Nathan-shaped obstacle in the way. That wasn’t insurmountable; he knew them, knew that an offer of a clumsy attempt at a relationship between the three of them was on the table, but he’d never touched it. It was easier as an idea, an almost, a maybe. 

Dwight was different. Dwight wasn’t a childish rush of hormones, or a grown-up reach for nostalgia, or a grasping attempt to touch the sun. He was just… Dwight. He was solid, steady, and soft all at once. The kind of person who took care of things. 

Duke wanted all that, and he wanted to see the big guy relax, relent, have a little fun. They worked as foils to each other as much as mirror images. Dwight walked the front lines of the crazy bullshit as much as Duke did, but wasn’t consumed by it. Duke got the feeling that when the trouble was solved for the day, Dwight went home and did something with himself. Duke wasn’t sure what. When he was alone, he pictured different things. He imagined Dwight renovating some ancient shack until it looked cozy, or absentmindedly fixing a vintage radio, or whittling.   
Duke didn’t know anything about whittling, except that he thought someone like Dwight would probably be good at it. 

It was a nice mental image, no matter what hobby he’d selected, and it was easy to picture himself there in some way, working at something of his own, but that was half the problem; it was easy to imagine but impossible to realize. Regardless of what Nathan and Audrey thought—Dwight had said he needed people _like_ Duke, not Duke specifically—Dwight wasn’t interested. 

He ignored the stupid, hopeful part of his head that pointed out that, despite their many worse traits, Nathan and Audrey were not bad at reading people who weren’t Duke. That same part reminded him that they were further from this than he was, and might be a little less biased. 

_That,_ He reminded himself sharply, _Doesn’t mean they saw something I didn’t. It doesn’t mean he feels the same way and I just can’t tell._

Duke was good at reading people. He was good at the subtle push-pull of flirting, the art of knowing when to make the first move and when to hang back and let the first move come to you. Dwight not only hadn’t made any moves, he seemed utterly indifferent to the whole dance, and Duke only had so much dignity; he couldn’t throw it away on someone so oblivious. 

He ended up dragged into another trouble chasing adventure within a week. Though it wasn’t a bad one—no one dead, at least— the whole gang was there, and he was keenly aware of Dwight’s massive, silent presence crammed next to him in the backseat of Nathan’s car. 

“So the thorns first appeared overnight on Westfall Rd. I thought they were heading South but they stopped for awhile and reappeared on Coastal, which is two miles South.” Nathan looked at Duke. “Right by the Gull, sorry. 

Fuck. Duke really hated it when troubles impacted business. How the hell was he supposed to keep a restaurant open when magic thorn bushes held off the lunch rush?

“Westfall?” Dwight asked. “That’s where that new coffee shop is, right?” 

Nathan shrugged, and Duke sighed. “Yeah, that’s where it is.” 

He’d been thinking of going. More specifically, he’d been thinking of going and bringing Dwight an americano, because colleagues sometimes did that and it didn’t have to mean anything and Duke only knew his coffee order because he ordered very loudly—

“So, date spots maybe?” At the sound of the word ‘Date’ coming from Dwight, Duke abruptly refocused. 

Nathan shrugged. “A coffee shop and the Gull? Seems flimsy. Could be restaurants?” 

“You should call Nora and warn her, just in case,” Dwight said. 

Duke was surprised and more pleased than he wanted to admit that Dwight even thought about that, but he nodded. “Yeah, I’ll give her a heads up.” 

When he called, she was already freaking out. “Duke, fuck, I think I might be stuck in here. There are these weird bushes—” 

“Nora, listen, do not touch the bushes. Just hang inside, make some food, have a drink, enjoy the view. We’ll figure this out and get you out soon.”

He hung up the phone and noticed Dwight watching him. “You’re good to your staff.” 

Duke shrugged. “Nora’s cool. She puts up with a lot of shit.” He gestured around, encompassing the troubles and his own habit of disappearing to help Nathan and Audrey at a moment’s notice. 

“My mom was a waitress,” Dwight said conversationally, though Duke sensed it wasn’t as light as he was acting like it was. “She always hated her managers though.” 

“There’s a lot of turnover in this business,” Duke said, as if he’d been in and around it his whole life rather than abruptly—and accidentally—buying a restaurant in his thirties. “If I find good people, I don’t want to risk losing them by being an asshole.” 

Dwight nodded, and looked like he was about to say something else, but Nathan was pulling over next to a crowd of people who were all staring at the massive tangle of thorns blocking the road. 

“Looks like there was an accident,” Audrey said. 

“We’ll talk to witnesses and deal with cover up,” Nathan said. “Duke, Dwight, you follow up on that date idea.” 

His grin was just a little more shit-eating than usual, which told Duke that—for once—Nathan knew exactly what he was doing. 

“What’s the story?” Dwight asked. 

Nathan shrugged and glanced at the bushes. “Botany experiment gone wrong?” 

Dwight heaved a put-upon sigh. “Good enough.” 

As they walked towards the coffee shop, Duke looked over at Dwight. “You could have told him it was a bad story.” 

Dwight shrugged. “I could’ve, didn’t have a better one though.” 

“You didn’t have anything better than ‘botany experiment’?” Duke asked. “You’re losing your touch, Squatch.” 

Dwight half-cracked a smile. “In my defense, this cleaner thing wasn’t meant to be a full time gig.” 

“Really?” Duke asked as they walked inside. “What were you expecting.” 

“Figured I’d leave someday,” Dwight said with a shrug. “When I left the guard I was looking for somewhere else to go. Garland said I could help him out until I knew where I was headed. Here I am.” 

Duke looked out the shop window where he could just barely see the sun glinting off the distant water. “I know how that feels.” 

“Never thought you’d stay in Haven?” 

“Came back to lay low,” Duke said. “Thought I’d check up, since I promised my old man.” He imitated Dwight’s shrug. “Here I am.” 

“Hmm,” Dwight said idly. “Always figured it was Nathan.” 

Duke had been running cons for a long enough time that he'd gotten pretty good at reading people. He knew how to spot the slightest change in attitude which might mean the mark was catching on. That was how he caught the fact that Dwight’s question was just a little _too_ casual. To an untrained ear, it would have sounded like an ordinary Dwight question. To Duke, it was a tell, not that it helped him determine what he was telling. 

“Nate’s… he’s an old friend,” Duke said carefully. “But he’s not enough to keep me here.” 

Dwight looked at him. “So what does?”

Duke was spared from having to answer because they’d finally reached the front of the line. “Welcome to Haven and Earth Coffee Shop. What can I get for you?” The barista smiled cheerfully at them and Duke noticed the “they/them” button they had pinned to their apron and smiled just a little more warmly back at them. 

“Hi,” Dwight said, all business, of course. “We’re looking into an incident with some contaminated plant life in the area and were wondering if you’ve noticed anything odd,” He stared at their nametag for a moment, “Averi?” 

“I don’t think so...” They studied Duke and Dwight for a moment. “Officers?” 

Duke looked at Dwight who was giving him the same look right back. After a second, Dwight shrugged. “Sure, close enough. Are you sure nothing strange has happened around here?” 

“Besides this conversation?” They asked. “No, not really.” 

“Anyone who seemed upset or angry? Any kind of unusual emotions?” 

“When you see people before they’ve had their coffee, you see the full spectrum of human emotions, but I can’t think of anyone who was _more_ or whatever. Although there was...” They trailed off. 

Dwight pushed. “Someone standing out? Did they say something weird or—”

“Well that’s the odd part; she didn’t say anything at all. She walked in, half opened her mouth, and then bolted. She’s come in a few times since we opened, but I don’t know her name. She orders a soy latte and sits over there.” Averi gestured to the far corner of the counter. 

“Do you remember seeing the thorn bushes out there around that time?” Duke asked. 

They stared at him strangely. “Do you think that girl had something to do with that?” 

“Uh, we suspect that a student from a university nearby might have been trying to play a prank with an invasive species.” 

“A _very_ invasive species,” Duke added.

“Well, I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.” They shrugged and glanced past Dwight’s shoulder at the line that was forming. 

“I should get back to work. Feel free to call if you have any more questions. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help.” 

Dwight waved, but they were long gone, back behind the counter and organizing the chaos of ordering. “That was a bust,” He sighed. “I’ll go check in with Nathan and Audrey.” 

“I’ll grab us something to go.” Duke joined the line, making a point not to watch Dwight leave the shop, because he didn’t have heart eyes and he didn’t look at him in any particular way when he walked out of a room. 

Averi smiled at him when he made it to the front of the line for the second time. “What can I get for you?” 

“I’ll take two black coffees, one lukewarm black coffee—” 

‘We don’t have… lukewarm coffee.” They were looking at him like he was insane, and he found that a little fair; it was a tragic way to drink coffee. 

“Just pour some iced coffee in with the regular coffee so it isn’t too hot, but don’t water it down.” 

“Okay, is that it for you?” They sounded vaguely hopeful. 

“Triple americano and… which of the muffins are good?”

Averi shrugged. “I can’t eat gluten so I haven’t tried them. The lemon blueberry is popular though; the berries are locally grown.”

“Perfect, four of those.” 

It didn’t really matter what they were, he knew for a fact that they all had a sweet tooth; he had seen Dwight grabbing donuts out of the box that seemed to appear like magic in the station every day. 

Truth told, he’d only gotten enough for all of them because it would have been weird if he’d just gotten one for Dwight. Nathan would never let him live it down and Audrey would give him that carefully encouraging look that felt more condescending than Nathan outright making fun of him. At least Audrey would probably eat hers. 

After collecting his order, he met Dwight, Duke, and Audrey outside where they were glancing over a map spread out on the hood of Nathan’s truck. Duke only barely glanced at it before passing Audrey her coffee. “Black.” He passed Nathan his. “Lukewarm.” 

If he was a little more careful handing Dwight’s over, well that was just because it was hot, and had nothing to do with the careful, accidental brush of Dwight’s fingers over his. “Triple americano.” 

Dwight met his eyes, his smile more there than on his lips. “Thanks.” 

Out of the corner of his eye, Duke saw Audrey elbow Nathan—not that he noticed— and pulled away with a grimace; he refused to give them the satisfaction. 

“And muffins for everyone.” He tossed the bag onto the hood of the car using the motion to hide the fact that he was putting a little space between himself and Dwight. 

“Nothing from anyone inside?” Nathan asked while Audrey selected a muffin. 

Duke shook his head. “Just a customer panicking before she ordered; doesn’t sound like a trouble.” 

“Has Nora checked in about the bushes at the Gull?” Nathan asked. 

“Not since thirty minutes ago when we talked,” Duke said, hoping his tone alone implied that Nathan had asked a ridiculous question; he got tired of directly telling Nathan that he was being ridiculous. 

“That’s our only other link,” Nathan said. “We got nothing here so we need to dig in there.” 

Duke rolled his eyes but he was already pulling out his phone. “Fine. I’ll bother her again.” 

“Hi Duke; the bushes are still here.” Nora said and it sounded like she was talking around a mouthful of food. 

“Yeah… before they showed up, did anything strange happen?” 

“The bushes were strange,” Nora said. “But I didn’t actually see them grow; I was on the phone. Someone wanted to know about our gluten free options. By the way, we should really print out separate allergen menus; I get really sick of listing everything off.” 

Duke kind of admired Nora’s ability to jump from talking about supernatural bushes to ordinary business stuff. Some people handled living with the troubles—not fighting them, just enduring them day to day—better than others. 

“Yeah, I’ll do something about that once we’ve dealt with this.” 

“I’m holding you to that,” Nora said. “I’ll call if anything changes.” 

Before he forgot, he pulled out his phone and added “Gluten Free Menus” to his list of things to do, but paused before he closed the app. It was a very loose connection. Flimsy at best. A coincidence. 

But after living in Haven for a while, it was hard to keep believing in coincidences. 

Dwight was looking at him strangely. “Got something, Duke?” 

“I don’t know. It’s pretty weak.” 

“Can’t be worse than nothing,” Nathan said. 

“The barista in there said they had a gluten allergy.” 

“As distressing as that sounds,” Audrey said, “I don’t think it would be enough to start a trouble.” 

Duke ignored her. “They also said someone came in, took one look at them, and bolted. Nora said she was talking to someone about gluten free menus when she first noticed the bushes.” 

“Date spots,” Dwight said. 

Nathan still looked confused, but Audrey had that crease between her brows that meant she was halfway to solving a trouble. 

“I think that girl is trying to ask Averi out,” Duke explained. “But she can’t get up the nerve.” 

“Huh.” 

Duke wondered how Dwight managed to get so much feeling into one inarticulate syllable. He didn’t have time to interpret it, but god, he wanted to. Was he just being hopeful? Was the rush of solving a trouble getting to him? 

Nathan glanced down at his phone. “More bushes, Seaside park this time.” 

“That would be a nice date,” Audrey said, and she was looking at Duke in a way that he didn’t like, like she was trying to subtly suggest something, but didn’t actually know anything about being subtle. 

“We really think the bushes are showing up wherever this girl wants to take her crush on a date?” Nathan asked. 

“You got a better theory, Nate?” Duke asked. 

Nathan shrugged. “It’s pretty minor to start a trouble.” 

“Something else could have started it,” Audrey pointed out, “This is just what the trouble _is._ ” 

“Fair enough.” Nathan shrugged. “Dumber things have started a trouble, I guess.” 

Duke could have sworn he was looking at him, but he wasn’t about to interpret that. He was too busy looking at Dwight, who hadn’t so much started his trouble as revealed it, but damn if that hadn’t been a dumb argument.

 _Should have let him take the damn box,_ Duke thought. It might have saved him some trouble, literally. 

“Glad we have this figured out,” Dwight said, maddeningly practical. “Except that we don’t know who she is. Averi said they didn’t know her name.” 

“There could be credit card receipts,” Nathan said. 

Duke held up his hand. “They didn’t know her name?” 

Dwight was looking at him, and the full force of his attention was enough to scramble Duke’s thoughts for a moment. “What do you mean?” 

“Averi noticed when this girl came in, they knew she was a regular, and they remembered that she always gets the same thing. 

“You have to call out a name to get coffee,” Dwight said, catching on immediately. “If she was a regular—” 

“If she was a regular Averi would know her name.” 

“I’ll go back in,” Duke said. “See what else I can get from them.” 

“I’ll stay with you,” Dwight said. 

Nathan and Audrey exchanged a glance, and Duke wondered what would be the consequences for punching Nathan, but at least they both had the tact not to actually say anything about it. 

“We’ll go to the park, see if she’s still there, or clean up a little,” Nathan said. “Call us if you get anything.” 

As they turned to go back inside, Dwight grabbed Duke’s arm. “Everything okay with Nathan and Audrey?” 

Suddenly, Duke remembered why he liked spending time with Nathan and Audrey; they didn’t ask stuff like that. He wasn’t even sure they’d pick up on the signals that would tell them they _should_ ask about stuff like that. 

“Yeah,” He said. 

“I just noticed they were acting a little odd.” 

Duke forced a laugh. “When aren’t they?” 

Dwight gave a _that’s fair_ shrug and nodded as they walked inside, not pushing it. He held the door open so that Duke had to go under his arm to get inside. Duke hated that his heart picked up just a little when he realized he barely had to bend his head. 

_Of all the stupid crushes in all the stupid towns,_ Duke thought. 

Averi looked guilty when they approached them. “What can I do for you, officers?” Their smile was a little too bright, just slightly too customer service; Duke didn’t trust it. 

“I’m not a cop,” Duke said. 

Averi looked at Dwight’s bulletproof vest with skepticism. “Right.” 

“I am,” Dwight said, “And we’re looking for the girl who came in here earlier.” 

“Well I don’t know who she is, so you’ll have to go somewhere else.” 

“Really? Dwight asked. “You never had to call her name? You’ve never talked? You knew where she sits when she comes in.” 

Averi’s smile tightened, and Duke recognized that it was as much of a glare as they could do at work. “We get a lot of customers.” 

“Averi,” Duke said. “We think she’s in trouble.” He lowered his voice. “Real _trouble.”_

They were too young to remember the last time the troubles had been in Haven, but if they grew up around here, they would have heard stories. Hell, if they’d been here for the past few months, they must have seen some weird shit, heard some rumors. Duke prayed they would know what he meant. 

They chewed on their lip for a moment. “Her name’s Cass; that’s all I know.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes! I only didn’t tell you because I thought it was some eco-protest or something; I didn’t want to rat her out.” 

“That speaks to strength of character,” Duke said, “I like that.” 

Their smile cracked just slightly, breaking into something almost genuine. “If you see her, um… tell her I said hi.” 

If they were right about what this trouble was, that was a very promising sign. Duke put a twenty in the tip jar and followed Dwight to the door. 

As soon as they got outside, Dwight turned to Duke. “What was that?” 

“What?” 

“Duke, do you know how much time I spend covering up the troubles? And you just ask about them directly?” 

“It was really more implied—” 

“Not everyone needs to know.” 

“They already knew,” Duke insisted. “You saw how they reacted, and they wouldn’t have told us anything if we hadn’t told them the truth. You know, some people don’t trust cops.”

Dwight rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I’ve noticed that about _some people._ ” 

Well. That was unexpectedly pointed. “What?” 

Dwight shrugged and turned away. 

“Hey, Squatch, look—” 

“Whatever, Duke; we’ve gotta find out how many Casses are in Haven and track down the right one.” 

The thing with Dwight that made him different from Audrey and Nathan—and it was predominantly a good difference—was that he didn’t know him quite as well, and couldn’t read him as easily as he could read Audrey and Nathan. With Nathan, Duke was always one hundred percent sure when, exactly, he’d put his foot in it. With Dwight, he had no idea, and he followed him to a police cruiser confused and defensive. 

“Squatch… Dwight, I’m not sure—” 

He held up a hand. “It’s fine, Duke.” 

Duke really didn’t think it was, but he didn’t know how to back over what he’d said, so he said nothing for a long minute, which was awkward. Silence with other people wasn’t something Duke was used to or comfortable in. Silence was honest. 

He didn’t like that, if it weren’t for the tense way Dwight was holding the steering wheel and staring at the road, Duke would _want_ to be silent with him.

But babbling was easier, more natural. “Pretty good coffee.” 

“Exactly how I like it,” Dwight agreed. He was smiling just a little, exactly enough for Duke to see it. “Hot, strong, and just a little bitter.” 

_Why_ did that make Duke want to blush. He hadn’t blushed since the eighth grade. He shifted to look out the window, just in case his ‘heart eyes’—as Audrey had called them—gave him away too much. 

“You have, uh, good taste.” Christ he was starting to sound like Nathan. 

Dwight’s eyes flicked to him before returning to the road. “That’s debatable.” 

Duke had nothing to say to that. His mouth felt locked shut, his head completely empty of witty comebacks, which were usually so easy for him. 

He finally found a voice just as they were approaching the park, and changed the topic completely, hoping to find something safer because apparently coffee wasn’t. “Weird trouble.” 

Instead of saying something along the lines of ‘all troubles are weird’ Dwight met Duke’s eyes. “I don’t know. Having something to say and not knowing how to say it; that’s scary.” 

Duke swallowed. That wasn’t a challenge. It couldn’t be. Duke was good at reading people, but he was reading this wrong. 

Nathan jogged over to them and duke had never been happier to see the interrupting idiot in his life. If he hadn’t shown up, Duke might have done something stupid. 

“We got lucky,” Nathan said, “Mrs. Beauchamp saw one of her students, said she looked really worried about something; name’s Cassandra Reynolds.” 

“Cass,” Duke said. “That’s the name we got from Averi.” 

“She’s sitting up there, we didn’t want to freak her out. Audrey—”

“You know, Nate,” Duke said, “I think I got this one.” 

“Duke—” 

“Nathan. She’s a scared kid, barely out of high school. She probably doesn’t know what she’s doing. I will be fine.” 

“I’ll back him up,” Dwight assured Nathan, and Duke was surprised that he didn’t find it patronising. 

“Okay, we’ll deal with the rest of the civilians down here,” Nathan said. 

“Isn’t that usually your job,” Duke said, gesturing to the crowd Nathan was about to lie to. 

“Isn’t this usually Audrey’s?” Dwight replied amiably. 

Duke ignored him because, yet again, he didn’t have a comeback; he really hoped that wasn’t becoming a habit. 

“Cass?” He called. He could barely see the top of her head above the tangle of thorns growing around her. 

“Help me!” 

“Kid, listen, you’re fine,” Duke said, then realized it sounded dismissive and tried again. “You’re going to be okay. You just need to listen to me.” 

“Okay?” 

“You’re doing this,” Duke said slowly and very clearly. “You made the plants at the coffee shop. You made them out by the Gull too, and now here. You want to tell me what’s going on?” 

“It’s… god this is so stupid.” 

“No it’s not,” Dwight cut in. “Whatever it is, we want to hear it.” 

“There’s this person, they work at Haven on Earth, and I’ve been thinking about asking them out. I was going to today; I had a speech planned and everything but then when I saw them working I panicked.” 

They had been right about the trouble, apparently. “I called the Gull because I thought I could, I don’t know, get up the nerve once I knew everything else would be perfect. I’m such an idiot.” 

“Stop saying that,” Duke admonished. “Trust me, kid, people have done way dumber stuff for love.” He sent Dwight a little smirk, and was pleased when he got a half-smile in return, even if he wasn’t sure what it meant. 

“I still couldn’t do it,” Cass went on. “Every time I think about actually _saying_ all that stuff I feel like I’m choking—” 

The thorns twisted together, hiding her from view. 

“Take a deep breath,” Duke said, moving closer and wondering if he could cut through some of the vines so he could actually see her. 

“I just can’t do it,” Cass said. “I mean, what if they say no?” 

Duke shrugged. “Then at least you know. Knowing the answer has to be better than this.” He gestured to the bushes, and to her obvious panic. 

Cass shifted and Duke saw a flash of a scuffed white sneaker kicking at the thorns. “What do I say?” 

“What you mean,” Dwight said. “No use beating around the bush.” 

The thorns shook and Duke swore the receded slightly. 

“You can do it,” He said. “Call them.” 

The thorns crept back even further, and Duke saw a small, dark-haired twenty-something with slightly disproportionate eyes pressing a cellphone against her ear. Her smile was heartbreakingly hopeful. 

A moment later, her face lit up and relaxed into a smile. “Averi?”

 _So that’s what Audrey meant by heart eyes,_ Duke thought. 

He and Dwight backed away after that as the bushes dried up and receded. No one would want an audience for what Cass was about to do, so they gave her space, but based on her smile, Duke doubted that any of her fears were founded. 

As they walked back towards the crowd, Duke looked at Dwight. “Did you just stop a trouble with a really bad pun?” 

Dwight caught Duke with the full force of his smile. “I think I did.” 

Duke was too stunned to reply; it was like watching the sun come out. He wanted to stay close to that smile and the man who had it, so when they reached Nathan’s truck, Duke called out “Who’s up for drinks at the Gull tonight?” 

“Are you buying?” Nathan asked. 

Duke rolled his eyes. Nathan had never paid for a drink at the Gull and they all damn well knew it. “For everyone else. It’s double for you.” 

“Bastard.” 

Hours later, he was shocked—and secretly downright thrilled—that Dwight actually showed up. He’d been expecting Nathan and Audrey, they came in for a drink most nights anyway, but part of him had known that Dwight was a wildcard. He might show up, or he might disappear, or even send a ‘sorry I can’t make it’ text that Duke would leave unread for weeks, just so it haunted his phone. 

But he came. He looked massive and awkward in the doorway, but he was there. The best part about him being at the Gull was that this was Duke’s place. 

Dwight had the advantage when they were scrambling around chasing troubles, but this was Duke’s territory now, and he’d had a few hours to think over some of the things Dwight had said. 

If the big guy wanted to issue challenges, he was about to learn that Duke had never met a challenge he wasn’t going to look in the eye and be obstinate at. 

“Oh look,” Audrey said. “Dwight’s here.” 

“I think he noticed, Parker,” Nathan said, hiding his smile in a sip of beer. 

Audrey nodded. “I know he did. Look, he’s blushing.” 

Duke knew for damn sure that he wasn’t blushing, and it spoke to his comfort in this environment that he didn’t feel the need to get defensive the way he had when he’d been in their office. 

Yes, here he had no problem finishing his drink and walking up to Dwight, his posture loose, relaxed, his pace slow. “Get you anything?” 

Dwight’s eyes flicked down and back up. It was subtle—all Dwight’s expressions were subtle—but Duke was used to looking for subtle expressions; he knew he’d just been given a full, thorough once-over. 

Dwight glanced at the empty glass still in Duke’s hand. “I’ll have what you’re having.” 

Duke smiled, and didn’t mind switching drinks to show off just a little. He grabbed a bottle from under the bar—which looked slightly less full than it had yesterday; he’d have to ask Nora what she’d tapped into while trapped—and poured two glasses. 

Dwight took a sip, his eyes never quite leaving Duke’s. “Scotch?” 

Duke beamed; unknowingly, Dwight had walked right into a trap. “Close. It’s Japanese whisky, so the ingredients are all Scottish, but the flavor tends to be a bit more delicate, more modern, so to speak.” 

Dwight looked into his glass. “Sounds hard to come by.” 

Duke shrugged. “Depends on who you know.” He was leaning over the bar, just barely crowding into Dwight’s space. 

“Careful,” Dwight said. “You’re talking to the chief of police.” 

Duke met the joke with one of his own. “You going to arrest me, Squatch?” 

“I could,” He said. “You give me a new reason to every time we talk.” 

Duke shrugged. “I like to keep things interesting.” 

Dwight rolled his eyes, leaning back and severing the connection. “If that’s what you want to call it.” 

“Oh, you’re going to act cool now?” Duke said, mirroring Dwight’s posture, angled away but open and relaxed. “Don’t forget, now I know you have a horrible sense of humor. I mean, puns, really?” 

“Pun or not,” Dwight said, “I made a good point. This town has enough secret shit. If you’ve got something to say, you should just say it.” He wasn’t quite looking at Duke, staring at the crowd where a couple people had recently gotten drunk enough to start dancing. 

“Says the guy who does the most work to keep it secret.” 

“ _Did_ ,” Dwight corrected. “Nowadays I’m just trying to keep people alive.” 

“But you still don’t want people knowing that the troubles are real?” Duke asked. 

He shrugged. “If they think it’s all bullshit they’ll feel safe.” 

Duke scoffed. “If they think it’s bullshit, they see one weird thing and think they’re losing their minds and don't want to tell anyone about it.” 

“I’m a cop, I’m supposed to make people feel safe.” 

“You and I have very different ideas of what cops are for, Squatch.” Duke took a long drink, barely bothering to savor the taste and only regretting it a little. 

“I’ve noticed that.” Dwight was studying him again, the same tight expression he’d had earlier. “Is that your problem with me? I’m a cop? Liked me better when I was just a handyman?” 

Duke snorted. “You were never just a handyman. Besides, I have no problem with cops; cops love me.” He used his drink to gesture at Audrey and Nathan who were blatantly watching them and discussing it behind their hands. 

Dwight frowned at them and looked away, finally turning back to Duke. “So what is it then?” 

“What’s what?” Duke couldn’t quite meet his eyes. 

“Come on, I notice things. There’s something up with you. What is it?” 

Now Duke really had to look away, Dwight was too close and he smelled like extremely expensive whisky and something else that was earthy and nice. They were standing too close, and Duke knew this was the moment he was supposed to do as Dwight had advised earlier and stop beating around the fucking bush and just _say something._ But he didn’t. 

“No idea what you’re talking about.” 

He expected Dwight to be offended. If it had been Nathan, he would have gone from zero to furious in an instant, but Dwight just laughed, not a fakey cover-up laugh, a genuine one, like he knew something Duke didn’t know and it was funny. “Whatever you say, Duke. 

Dwight got up and walked away, crossing the bar to talk to someone else and leaving Duke to watch him go, feeling like he’d just lost a game he hadn’t known he was playing. 

Thankfully, Duke was good at drinking. He was good at knowing exactly how much to drink and when to eat so that he always hovered on the fun side of being a little more relaxed than normal, but not drunk enough to make bad choices. He seemed to be alone in that, however, because half the men—and a few of the women—were lining up for an arm wrestling tournament that could not lead to anything good. 

Folks were betting drinks, cash, and dares, all hovering excitedly around one of the smaller tables. Duke had been keeping an eye on it, had watched Dwight get cajoled until he was sitting down, one massive arm on the table, effortlessly eliminating people while still maintaining a casual conversation and sipping his drink. 

Nathan managed to hold his own for a second or so longer than most people, probably entirely because he couldn’t feel how much his muscles hurt. Duke was hovering on the outskirts, considering. Dwight had undoubtedly won the last round of whatever they were doing, and Duke wasn’t one to let those things lie. 

His doubts about Dwight’s feelings seemed more unfounded than they had, and he was fairly confident that wasn’t just the whisky talking. And if it was, well, Duke would rather crash and burn spectacularly than quietly. 

When Freddy’s hand smashed onto the table an instant after Audrey—the unofficial referee—had called go, Duke took his seat, smiling confidently. 

A slow smile spread across Dwight’s features. He put his arm on the table, a wordless challenge. 

Duke grabbed his hand, it was rough, warm, and dry on his palm, his grip sure and steady. 

“You sure about this, Crocker?” 

He had to force himself not to shiver, had to suppress some very interesting thoughts about the way Dwight’s hand might feel other places. Those weren’t going to help him now. 

“I like a challenge,” Duke said. 

“Really?” Dwight asked. “Well then, let’s raise the stakes.” 

These were dangerous waters, but Duke waded in happily. “Name your price.” 

The crowd faded out. They were still there, exchanging bets and jokes and jeers, but Duke only barely heard them. His attention was entirely on Dwight. 

“If I win, you tell me.” 

“Tell you that thing you think I’m not saying?” Duke asked. 

“Yup.” 

“And what if I win?” 

Dwight’s smile widened. “I’m sure you’ll come up with something.” It was very obvious he didn’t think Duke was going to win, no one was bleeding after all. Some fights weren’t about strength though; Duke knew that better than most people. 

“Ready?” Audrey asked. 

Two terse nods. 

“GO!” 

Dwight’s grip changed, tightened, pushed. Duke met it with an equal force of his own. 

There were very few people in the world who could make Duke feel small, fewer still with whom he would like that feeling. What was happening right now was intense in a way that had nothing to do with Duke’s competitive streak. 

Duke’s hand started to give. He was stubborn and he was strong, but Dwight’s arms were the size of his fucking head; there wasn’t much competing with that. There was some pride in being the person who’d lasted longest, even if it was only a few seconds. At least Dwight’s full attention was on Duke; he wasn’t drinking anymore, wasn’t chatting with Nathan while obliterating people without blinking. He was even straining, just a little, and Duke hoped that wasn’t just for show. 

It would only be another second or so. Duke couldn’t hold out much longer unless he took drastic action. The whisky buzz gave him more confidence than he normally had, but it was the high from touching Dwight, from the tension and the eye contact and the feel of Dwight’s hand in his that really made the decision. 

He wanted to win this, and not because he didn’t want to pay up. 

Duke’s grip shifted slowly, not pushing anymore, but pulling, bracing against Dwight’s stubborn resistance so that he could pull himself forward and press his lips against Dwight’s. 

The table shook with the force of Dwight’s hand hitting it. 

Duke pulled away, smirking. The buzz of the crowd got louder, more real as he came down from the high. Everyone was shouting about the shocking upset, those who’d made the easy bet on Dwight were arguing with those who’d bet on the underdog. Out of the corner of his eye, Duke saw Audrey handing Nathan a twenty, his grin positively shit eating. 

“I win,” Duke said. 

Dwight nodded. “Question is, what did you win?” 

Duke didn’t answer. He pulled Dwight’s trick from earlier and stood up, making nice with the crowd, playing it all off as a joke, and carefully, quietly, leaving the bar. 

It was exactly cold enough that the deck was empty, but not freezing or uncomfortable, which was perfect because Duke planned on waiting out here for a while. Dwight would follow him out, possibly just to ask Duke what the fuck that was, but Duke hoped it would be something else. 

He was only waiting for a few minutes before Dwight sauntered out. Duke wondered if Dwight had needed to practice that casual air the way he had, or if it came naturally to him, if he really was exactly as at ease in any environment as he always seemed. 

“Brought you another drink,” Dwight said. 

Duke took it, planning on nursing this one, lest he slip across his carefully drawn line. “This doesn’t pay your debt, you know.” 

“I figured.” Dwight took a slow sip. “You going to tell me what will?” 

Duke shrugged. “Maybe I don’t know yet.” 

“I don’t like owing things, Duke.” Dwight said. 

“You must have a great credit score.” Duke knew he was being annoying, and he didn’t mind at all. 

Of course Dwight barely even flinched. “Yes, I do,” He said dryly. 

Duke found himself moving into Dwight’s space instinctively, pulling towards him like gravity. They were inches apart. The whisky-and-earth smell of him was filling Duke’s nostrils, scattering his thoughts. 

“You know, we still don’t know who’d win a fight,” Dwight said, tone low and something more than conversational. “You’ve cheated both times.” 

Duke tilted his head up. “The guy who wants to fight fair always loses.” He kissed Dwight again, slowly this time. This was exploration, lazy and simple. 

One of Dwight’s hands curled around his waist, pulling Duke even closer. He matched Duke move for move, the right kind of clumsy as they figured each other out. 

They broke apart, but Dwight’s hand stayed where it was. “Still think you have something to say to me, Crocker.” 

Duke smiled. “Well, a very wise man once said ‘there’s no point beating around the bush—” 

Dwight opened his mouth to say something probably sarcastic. Duke put a finger to his lips. 

“Want to grab coffee sometime?”


End file.
